Health Imaging & IT - April 2008 - (Page 42)

Technology Review By Beth Walsh PreP TiMe Planning for the eMR It takes a lot of work to successfully implement an electronic medical record system. Those who’ve done it say you cannot underestimate the planning and preparation required, from workflow to training to motivating everyone involved. It’s been about six months since the fivephysician group, Medical Arts Center in Kearney, Mo., installed the Cerner PowerWorks EMR, says James LaSalle, MD, and the group is more than satisfied with their progress. “The thinking was that everybody will have to have EMRs within the next few years, so let’s start looking at systems,” LaSalle says. Choosing a system was challenging, he says, because there are so many different systems and so much promise. “They all have some interesting components, but you have to look at the overall usability of the system.” it’s not rocket science Preparing for the transition to the new system and reviewing the hardware needs were the group’s two biggest challenges. They needed to decide how many monitors were needed and what telecommunications and electronic equipment were best, among other details. Once wiring was done, “it pretty much wasn’t rocket science to do this,” LaSalle says. Cerner provided an implementation template that really helped, he adds. It included a realistic timetable to prepare for implementation, what to consider regarding data entry, and how to get the EMR, insurance information and billing system in synch. LaSatte recommends that facilities consider more than just the actual software program. “I think sometimes that’s not thoroughly thought through in the rush to implement electronic records. This is a whole process. It’s about patient flow and efficiency and how you’re going to utilize the system once it’s in place.” LaSalle says that his group decided to phase in the EMR to give everyone time to learn. A “big bang” implementation would have required that they drop patients to account for ineffective utilization of the program. “We didn’t think we could afford that. That turned out to be a wiser decision that we would have ever thought.” Within six months of the go-live date, everyone in the practice is using the system and seems comfortable with it. Healthimaging.com 42 Health Imaging & IT | april 2008 http://Healthimaging.com

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Health Imaging & IT - April 2008 Contents On the Web The Enterprise News Update Cracking Down: CT Radiation Dose 3D Rendering: Options Galore Thinking Thin-Client Modality Review Ergonomics & Design Special Section: Storage Strategies Imaging Tools Technology Outlook People & Technology Technology Review IT Trends Reader's Resource Stat Sheet

Health Imaging & IT - April 2008

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